Assessing Children’s Health and Fitness
The “bleep” test, the “beep” test, the “Multistage Fitness Test” (MSFT)
The test had its beginnings in Britain to quantify the fitness level of children and sports team participants. Its popularity has grown world-wide and it is now used by major league teams as a requirement of participation, not to mention military units, the FBI, schools and other venues where fitness is a job requirement. Many other “clones” of the test have been developed (such as the yo-yo test) but all of them are pretty much the same measurement of the body’s ability to utilize oxygen and get it to its cells.
For those of you who wish to have a copy of the test to use in your family, an MP3 file is downloadable below.
The “game” or “exercise” is easy to set up and just as easy to perform (except for the running part) but it does need some explanation to those you want to administer it to. The tape uses “beeps” to time the exercise. You start the tape and don’t stop it until the last person taking the test has dropped out. Ostensibly to the highest level it takes just over 20 minutes; but no one has been verified as completing it even though several have claimed to do so. Most fit individuals reach their maximum around 10 minutes, only professional level athletes make it above level 12 or so (there are 21).
Give the instructions, start the tape, wait for the first set of three beeps and runners begin at a pace “just fast enough” to arrive at the cone where they wait until the next beep sounds and they start back. They run back and forth at the same pace waiting at the end for the next beep until another series of three beeps indicate the “next level” and the pace picks up. So, it’s back and forth to the time of single beeps until three beeps announces the next level of faster pace.
The “players” continue until maximal effort is reached with encouragement from the onlookers. The idea is to keep going until they have been “late for the beep” two times in a row and their score becomes the last level that they reached on time. Everyone in the family will be different and playing the game will improve both the score and fitness. Here is a video of a college professor teaching students how to administer the test.
So, what to expect at the various ages for “fitness?” Barring preclusive physical impairments here are the charts for boys and girls 9 through 17. Children younger than nine can run to the beeps but really shouldn’t do so under pressure. Developing a love for how their bodies feel when they’re fit and active should be the FIRST agenda. Nine is early enough to begin the challenge of competing with one’s self for improvement as the SECOND agenda. Physical competition against others should be left for sometime AFTER 12 as the THIRD agenda.
PERFORMANCE AT AGE LEVELS
Boys
| Percentile |
< 5 |
5-20 |
20-40 |
40-60 |
60-80 |
80-95 |
>95 |
| Age |
very poor |
poor |
fair |
average |
good |
very good |
excellent |
| 9 |
< 2/2 |
2/2-3/4 |
3/5-4/4 |
4/5-5/4 |
5/5-6/4 |
6/5-7/7 |
> 7/7 |
| 10 |
< 2/2 |
2/2-3/5 |
3/6-4/5 |
4/6-5/5 |
5/6-6/6 |
6/7-8/1 |
> 8/1 |
| 11 |
< 2/2 |
2/2-3/6 |
3/7-4/7 |
4/8-5/8 |
5/9-6/10 |
7/1-8/6 |
> 8/6 |
| 12 |
< 2/2 |
2/2-3/8 |
4/1-5/1 |
5/2-6/4 |
6/5-7/6 |
7/7-9/3 |
> 9/3 |
| 13 |
< 2/4 |
2/4-4/2 |
4/3-5/6 |
5/7-6/9 |
6/10-8/3 |
8/4-10/1 |
> 10/1 |
| 14 |
< 2/6 |
2/6-4/5 |
4/6-6/1 |
6/2-7/4 |
7/5-8/9 |
8/10-10/9 |
> 10/9 |
| 15 |
< 2/7 |
2/7-4/7 |
4/8-6/3 |
6/4-7/7 |
7/8-9/2 |
9/3-11/3 |
> 11/3 |
| 16 |
< 2/8 |
2/8-4/9 |
5/1-6/6 |
6/7-7/10 |
8/1-9/6 |
9/7-11/8 |
> 11/8 |
| 17 |
< 3/1 |
3/1-5/2 |
5/3-6/8 |
6/9-8/3 |
8/4-9/9 |
9/10-12/1 |
> 12/1 |
Girls
| Percentile |
< 5 |
5-20 |
20-40 |
40-60 |
60-80 |
80-95 |
>95 |
| Age |
very poor |
poor |
fair |
average |
good |
very good |
excellent |
| 9 |
< 2/2 |
2/2-3/1 |
3/2-3/8 |
4/1-4/6 |
4/7-5/4 |
5/5- 6/6 |
> 6/6 |
| 10 |
< 1/7 |
1/7-3/1 |
3/2- 3/8 |
4/1-4/7 |
4/8-5/6 |
5/7- 6/8 |
> 6/8 |
| 11 |
< 1/6 |
1/6-2/8 |
3/1- 3/8 |
4/1-4/8 |
4/9-5/8 |
5/9-7/1 |
> 7/1 |
| 12 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-2/8 |
3/1-4/1 |
4/2-4/9 |
5/1-5/9 |
6/1-7/3 |
> 7/3 |
| 13 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-3/1 |
3/2-4/1 |
4/2-5/1 |
5/2-6/1 |
6/2- 7/5 |
> 7/5 |
| 14 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-3/1 |
3/2-4/1 |
4/2-5/1 |
5/2-6/2 |
6/3- 7/6 |
> 7/6 |
| 15 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-3/12 |
3/2-4/2 |
4/3-5/2 |
5/3-6/3 |
6/4-7/7 |
> 7/7 |
| 16 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-3/1 |
3/2- 4/2 |
4/3-5/2 |
5/3-6/3 |
6/4-7/8 |
> 7/8 |
| 17 |
< 1/5 |
1/5-3/1 |
3/2-4/2 |
4/3-5/3 |
5/4-6/4 |
6/5- 7/9 |
> 7/9 |
Finally, if you’re still with me, here is a summary chart of the entire test levels and shuttles on each level. It shows the relative speed the child is running (km/h) at each level as well as times and distances.
TEST SUMMARY INFORMATION
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Affecting an estimated 1% of people over 60 years of age, what has come to be known as “Parkinson’s Disease” is one of the most common neurologic disorders known today.
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Well, it shouldn’t really surprise any of you because it’s your least favorite talk with your kids too (assuming you’re a parent)—and they’re YOUR kids.
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If it does, it means you really have no clue that he was the one who basically took Cholera off the front page of every newspaper and gave the world toilets, sewer systems and public works departments—world-wide.
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I’ve mentioned nine so far in the previous two parts including: Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis who was basically killed for suggesting his colleagues wash their hands; the vitriol made public by the new fangled internet against Dr. Prusiner over disease caused by proteins; and, the delay in cancer therapy caused by the “good ol’ boy’s.”
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And I even asserted that pediatricians don’t have as much trouble with that as other specialists; proposing, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, that it was because we were all used to dealing with adolescents whose very body language conveys that every adult around them “just doesn’t have a clue.”
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It’s one thing to live 102 years and witness two generations of medical advancements and still quite another to be the one who made many of those advances!
Further, it’s even more unusual when the Decagenarian set out to do nothing but “be a good doctor” yet ended up with over 750 articles, 12 books and, get this, TWO lifetime achievement awards—why not he saw almost two lifetimes come and go.
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I wish I was smart enough to write a definitive article on that, it would do the world a favor.
But I’m not, so this is not about that; it’s about the unfortunate result of all that—the often adolescent refusal to accept new knowledge when it is presented.
Read more→
I’m sorry to say that my profession is no different than others when it comes to EGO! At least it is now.
As pathetic as it sounds, a person’s tolerance or consideration of new information (even the true kind) hangs upon: where or even who it is coming from, how far it departs from what you already think you know, and perhaps even more importantly how the change will effect the person’s ego or pocketbook.
4 Posts in "Unaccepted Breakthroughs" Series
- Major Medical Breakthroughs, unaccepted: Intro/Index – 22 Jul 2017
Human nature as it is, doctors not excepted, change is fought against tooth and nail if it at all offends either ego or pocketbook. This is a bit of history lesson on a few of our hard-won breakthroughs where not only the idea, but the discoverers were unaccepted, rejected and even attacked for their discoveries.
- Part One - Handwashing, Incubators, Angioplasty, Cancer, Ulcers – 23 Jul 2017
Medical Breakthroughs Initially Ridiculed, Rejected or Persecuted. Yes, the doctor who suggested that other doctors wash their hands actually lost his life! There are many others: handwashing, incubators, angioplasty, cancer, ulcers, brain injury…
- Part Two - Germs, proteins, heredity and immunotherapy – 31 Jul 2017
As if part one of this series wasn't enough—there are more! Incredibly, this was written long before COVID-19, mask mandates or BLM reinforcing the mantra "progress has no greater enemy than doctors (or politicians) with ‘vested interests masquerading as moral principles."
- Part Three - rational scepticism, evil intent and concussions – 8 Aug 2017
Rational skepticism in one thing; but, deliberate and evil intent is quite the "bad brother from the dark side." Rejecting a reasonable and hard-won piece of medicine purely for financial and cover-your-a$$ reasons; well, I'm glad that Roger Godell and his NFL got caught with their dairy-aire's hanging out in public.
Brain injury from professional sports has a bleed-off in children’s sports as well. You can be better informed on that aspect in these posts about children’s concussions.
The incredible bodily change during puberty never ceases to amaze me. In this project I have a couple other observations as well.
Frist, I’m a bit envious of the technical skills it took to create such a time-lapse montage. Even the calendar on the wall progresses through the months and years, and I’m positive it’s more than one year.
And second, think of what it must have taken to keep his son’s cooperation through that many years! An incredible joint project through a (normally) difficult time of life for a teen where cooperation through long term projects is hard to come by.
The Immunization Strategy
HIV and Influenza What The Vaccine Haters Don’t Want You To Know
Malaria, smallpox, Polio and some other 30 odd diseases have been controlled by substantial immunization programs — which, it seems, the vaccine-haters didn’t want to happen.
Sitting here in the 21st century, most of us really don’t have a clue how much real suffering humanity has endured in all aspects of their lives since the beginning of time, from malaria, tuberculosis, pneumonia, diarrhea, influenza… and the list goes on.
Historical evidence reveals that even less than 100 years ago parents were so demoralized by the amount of uncontrollable disease that they were reluctant to even give their newborn infants a name until they had “proven” that they would make it through life for a couple of year! Can we comprehend what that must have been like?
Then there was the spark of hope when Smallpox seemed to be controllable—Polio, Diptheria, Tetanus… all through immunization efforts.
Seth Berkley is an epidemiologist and the CEO of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the global health organization protecting lives by improving access to vaccines in developing countries. [No, they are not pharmaceutical salesmen—they don’t make money from production or sale of immunizations.]
With more than half a billion children immunized, he is leading Gavi’s efforts to reach a further 300 million children in the next five years and build sustainability into country immunization programs.
Prior to Gavi, he spearheaded the development of vaccines for HIV as founder and CEO of the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative.
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